Leading Questions for Florida and UCF as Gasparilla Bowl Nears

Here are four questions for the Gasparilla Bowl between the Gators and Knights.

Brian Smith | Dec 19, 2021

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There are several valuable questions that need answered prior to Florida playing UCF in the Dec. 23 Gasparilla Bowl. Despite the in-state battle, it’s not necessarily valued by all participants.

With opt-outs preparing for the NFL Draft, as well as players not sure of their status because of a coaching change in Gainesville, Florida players are more in question than UCF players. That does not mean there are not important issues to discuss with the Knights like injury news.

Which Gators Want to Actually Play in the Gasparilla Bowl?

As time grows nearer to the game on Thursday, there’s simply been no indication from anyone not definitively in only a position of “positive spin only” or risk being fired or reprimanded, i.e. Florida coaches that have commented about the Florida players prior to the game.

In short, it’s been quiet. Too quiet. Experience should tell people that many of the Gators on the current roster may not be 100% invested in this game.

Some of the players are still trying to figure out when they will know their new position coach (may not happen until some point in January for many of them), or if they might transfer. That’s not a positive situation with a football game to be played in four days.

The Florida coaches and/or sports information department can spin it all they want, there will be players in the orange and blue that could all but care no less about the bowl game but are still playing in it. That’s not good.

Also of note, talented Florida defensive end Zachary Carter declared for the NFL Draft and will not play in the bowl game. He recorded eight sacks, 11 tackles for loss and 32 overall tackles for the Gators this season.

Florida Quarterback Play

Many Florida fans want to see Anthony Richardson play, but the redshirt freshman will be out with an injury so that’s not possible. Now there’s the situation with starting quarterback Emory Jones transferring.

Report: #Gators starting quarterback Emory Jones plans to enter the transfer portal.

Sources confirmed to @SI_AllGators that Jones intends to play in the Gasparilla Bowl.https://t.co/bkp4tIzO0p
— Zach Goodall (@zach_goodall) December 15, 2021

As noted in All Gators Publisher Zach Goodall’s tweet above, Jones still plans to play. Is he totally invested? Is he trying to convince a school to take a chance on him?

There are more questions than answers, but the status of what motivates Jones for this game could determine the outcome.

Florida Coaching Staff

There’s reason to believe the Florida coaches that stuck around for the bowl game will be very motivated. At least that’s common sense talking. The vast majority of them will be fired by new Head Coach Billy Napier, per multiple reports Inside The Knights heard to date. Therefore, they are coaching for another job in 2022.

The better UF plays in this game, the more likely each of these coaches gains momentum heading into the all-important January coaching convention where coaches talk shop and change jobs across college football.

Look for the Florida offense and defense to come out swinging. The Coaches have a lot riding on how the Gators perform against the Knights even if their time in Gainesville is short. Trick plays are all but assured for this game.

Who’s Healthy?

As noted, Richardson will not play. There’s also the question about UCF running back Isaiah Bowser and wide receiver Jaylon Robinson. Both have struggled with injuries this season, and they are likely the most important skill players for the Knights.

For UCF and its freshman quarterback, Mikey Keene, to consistently move the football against a disappointing yet talented Florida defense, having the talents of Bowser and Richardson will be vital. Keene needs big plays, and the following effort is one that would be welcomed with open arms:

Jaylon Robinson snatched the ball out of the air 😱

Touchdown UCF. pic.twitter.com/0Ev6wLv140
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 18, 2021

There’s also inevitably those players that get banged up but play anyway or are out of the bowl game based on what happened at practices. In short, both coaching staffs will not exactly go out of their way to let it be known that additional players may be limited or not even play after getting dinged during bowl prep.

Bowl practices are often spirited and physical as younger players get more repetitions, and it’s also a chance to reassess depth chart positioning; there will be one-on-one matchups to help do that.

Once the game is kicked off, that’s when people will know if there are any surprises regarding missing players. Again, coaches are not going to offer that information in press conferences that will be held on Monday and Tuesday of this week.

In addition to recruiting talk at the beginning of the show, here's the original podcast about the Florida and UCF matchup with Goodall joining The Daily Knight podcast shortly after the game was announced:

For UCF coverage and recruiting information go to: The Daily Knight podcast. For more college football, UCF and recruiting information, go to Twitter: @fbscout_florida and @UCF_FanNation, as well as my YouTube Channel and Instagram page. Like and Subscribe!